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The Power of Intention
Introduction Life responds to our intention. When we really want something to occur, life tends to move toward us, fulfilling our aspiration. If our intention is full -- i.e. if our energies are intensely directed toward the pursuit of a specific goal over time -- life not only responds, but does so rapidly, fulfilling that deepest aspiration. For example, when Albert Einstein began to focus all parts of his being -- mental, vital, and physical -- toward the pursuit of his goal of finding work to overcome his utterly destitute state as a young man, the possibility of working at the Patent Office moved toward him. When his intention became full -- i.e. he crossed over a certain threshold of intensity demanded of life -- the job became his. From that new post, he not only overcame his current predicament of acute poverty and misery, but it served as the platform through which he would develop papers that would change the course of science and the history of the world. From this, we see that there may be no greater means for success and accomplishment in life than our intention. When we have a clear knowledge of what we want to accomplish, and our emotions fully support it, then our intention takes shape. If we then make a determined, persevering effort to carry out our hearts desire, we generate an irresistible power that quickly attracts it. If per chance that particular aspiration is not fulfilled, then another one is! In we look around, we will see that life is always responding to one’s intentions. In Jane Austin’s famous novel Pride and Prejudice, Mrs. Bennett intensely desired to marry off her daughters to avoid a pending eviction of her family; and within a year, that is precisely what occurred (for three of them). When Erin Brockovich directed all of her energies to getting out of her won desperate state of poverty, she quickly secured a job at a law office that not only lifted her out of misery, but became the springboard through which she would win the largest victim rights settlement in history ($300 million). When we focus on accomplishing something, then our intention takes shape. When our intention is full, -- i.e. when we intensely want something to occur, and sustain that urge over time -- life brings us what we want in spades. The ancient Indian texts known as the Upanishads declare, 'You are what your deepest desire is. As is your desire, so is your intention. As is your intention, so is your will. As is your will, so is your deed. As is your deed, so is your destiny.' Interest in a Thing One interesting aspect of human aspiration/intention is that it can express at various levels -- from a mild mental interest in a subject, to a desire to accomplish something, to intense need to bring about our heart's desire. And yet, life can instantly respond to our intention at any of these levels: even to a passing fancy! One day I walked down Columbus Avenues -- a busy street connecting downtown San Francisco and Fisherman's Wharf (a popular tourist destination) -- for the first time in many years. As I walked up Columbus from the wharf to downtown, I admired its many cafes, and thought that this is a wonderful street with enormous potential. I had never really thought about this street in quite this way. The next day in the local paper I saw an article about how for the first time in 35 years business and public officials want to make Columbus Avenues more of a destination and stopping place, rather than just a by-way to get to Fisherman's Wharf from downtown. In fact, I had never seen an article on Columbus Avenue development ever in my life, let alone one within 24 hours covering the very idea I had in mind. It also turned out to be very first and main article in the local paper! As we see, even a passing fancy will attract corresponding response, as long as there is a modicum of interest is involved. It is not full-blown intention, but a causal focusing of the mind can very often attracts response from life! Perhaps you have found yourself in the following situation: You have just thought about a subject you hadn’t thought of for decades, and then two minutes later, there is discussion on that very topic on TV! That is dramatic enough, but when you have never seen that subject referred to in a lifetime of TV-watching, then you know something profound is at work! You sit there, at once startled and amazed, before you remind yourself that you have just experienced a powerful synchronicity and response from life -- in this case, due to one’s focused interest in a subject. If you watch out for it, you can probably see this extraordinary interest-inducing phenomenon at least several times a day. Real Intention Though the above incidents were dramatic, producing interesting, somewhat useful results, in the end, they were only transitory incidents -- a mere passing interest in a subject. Real intention, on the other hand, takes shape when our desire is sustained over time -- i.e. when it repeats in our thoughts, and continually rises in our emotions. From that poise, we generate a surge of energy within, which moves out into the field of life, and attracts corresponding elements that are truly beneficial. To illustrate this point, consider the following incident involving a young Asian friend of ours. Let’s read her story. “Working at the Railway Recruitment Board, I am in charge of the pre-examination work at our organization. There we have an elaborate procedure for conducting examinations, which normally occurs in several stages. A week ago, I met with my chairman where we discussed the possibility of having candidates submit their examinations electronically. This would not only make it easier for us to handle the flow of information, but it would have the effect of bringing down our expenditures. Unfortunately, my chairman was apprehensive about the idea, and so the conversation ended there. However, inside myself, I still strongly believed that this approach was possible. Several days later, the chairman called me to say that he had received an invitation from a foreign-based computer firm, who were launching a new software product. Since he was going to be preoccupied with other matters during that time, he proposed my name instead to represent our organization. When I attended the meeting, I learned to my delight that the software would in fact enable our candidates to take a variety of examinations through the computer. I not only enjoyed the demonstration of features, but I also got the chance to interact with the program. That effort clarified a number of points on the feasibility of using it our own environment. In retrospect, I now see that an invitation from an unknown company had unexpectedly come to us because I believed very strongly that the computer approach was a workable idea. Thus, I saw my idea transformed into reality.” Our friend not only had an intense interest in seeing something come about, but also sustained that interest over time. (“However, inside myself, I still strongly believed that this approach was possible.”) A sustained desire to see something come about is far more likely to attract tangible results than when our intention is short-lived. In this episode, our friend's on-going aspiration to automate the examination procedures at her firm reached a certain pitch, which attracted from out of nowhere the opportunity to interact with a software application that seemed to suit their needs perfectly. If we look around in our own lives, or in the lives of others, or in history or literature we will see examples where a sustained aspiration to accomplish led to rapid, enormous, or enormous rapid achievement. For example, in Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice, Mrs. Bennet sustained an intense aspiration to marry off her daughters -- which is exactly what occurred in remarkably short order. Likewise, Erin Brockovich sustained a ferocious desire to win the legal case for her constituency who were poisoned by groundwater contamination, and in fact attracted the largest financial settlement of its kind in history. And then there was the case of young Albert Einstein, who reached deep within himself, sustaining for months on end an intense desire to overcome his plight of destitute and poverty. As a result, he only attracted a job position that provided him with financial security, but it set the stage for his most prolific period of insights into the nature of the physical world, changing the course of the 20th century. When we really want passionately want something, and sustain it over time, we generate an irresistible force that attracts the most startling positive conditions in life, both for ourselves and the collectives we are part of. A Caveat, a Reversal, and a Vast Opening Though life responds to an aspiration that is clearly defined, filled with passion, and sustained over time, there are times when a response will simply not come! That is usually the case because there is some wanting element in our being that is blocking our aspiration from attracting our heart’s desire. It is usually there in our attitudes. There is something in our wanting thoughts and feeling about life, about others, about work, or about ourselves that blocks us from aligning with and attracting corresponding positive conditions. However, when we identify those wanting qualities and reverse them, we open the floodgates, and startling, positive results move towards us. Often the results far exceed any expectations we might have had. For example, consider the case of Darcy and Eliza, the two main characters of Pride and Prejudice. Early on in the story, Darcy really wanted Eliza. However, for the longest time, he was unable to win her over -- mainly because she was put off by his arrogant and prideful behavior. However, at some point, Darcy began to recognize his own deficiencies, and spurred on by his love for Eliza, made the conscious effort to overcome them. As soon as he did that, the elopement episode immediately presented itself, which gave Darcy the perfect opportunity to show the best side of his character. When he then resolved that potentially devastating affair, he was stunned to discover that Eliza actually loved him, and then accepted his offer of marriage. In other words, by reversing himself and overcoming a wanting quality in his character, he suddenly attracted that which he so dearly aspired for. We see that the same dynamic occurred for Eliza. At one point in the story, she came to admire and secretly love Darcy -- especially after his noble efforts that ended the elopement episode. Unfortunately, she sensed that after that awful affair that Darcy would never anything to do with her. And yet she too grappled with her conscience, seeing the error in her attitudes and beliefs. At the peak of this reversal of consciousness, Darcy suddenly appeared at her doorstep with a proposal of marriage! In other words, she too shifted an attitude to the positive, and was therefore able to attract the object of her desire. Thus, we see in these two cases that when we have the deep intention for something to come about and it does not come to us, it is often life asking us to make a corresponding change in our being – usually in our attitudes and beliefs. When we make that change, life conspires to bring to us our heart’s desire. Levels of Intention that Attract • A mere passing fancy • Taking a serious interest in a matter • Intensely aspiring to achieve a goal • Intense aspiration to achieve a goal sustained over time • Sustained, intense aspiration matched by right attitudes in life --Roy Posner 16:49, 19 June 2009 (UTC) ---- Back to articles on Life Response http://server3.web-stat.com/4/humanscience.gif [http://www.web-stat.com/checkstats1.htm H] Category:Life Response Category:The Secret Category:Accomplishment